GENERAL FARM PROGRAM 707 



I have got a few white feathers in my wing; I will go along with 

 them on that, that is, the farmers who have got full-feathered white 

 wings; I am w^illing to say that I will go along on a 90-percent chance 

 with my brothers in the other departments, but for God's sake do 

 not cut it down to 80 percent or 70 percent or 60 percent; give us a 

 fair chance. I do not see any reason why it should not be a 100 

 percent parity; why talk about 90 percent? But the fact is we have 

 been operating under a 90 percent parity program, and the people 

 understand it; they are not sore on it; they recognize that they are 

 getting as much good, the general consuming public, the laborer, the 

 businessman, the housewife are all getting as much benefit out of this, 

 because they are being assured of an adequate supply of good food, 

 and that is the thing we all want. 



Now, we are afraid of heavy surpluses, and we have got to take 

 care of the surpluses. But so far as acreage allotment is concerned 

 that is not always a fair base on which to make it possible for the 

 farmer whose life depends upon that program, the farmer who is 

 being pinched down to the point where he is completely sold out. 

 Adjustments should be made for him, and there should be some 

 compensation coming back to him in some way because of the pinch 

 that he is undergoing through the general regulations which must 

 apply, as we believe in Kansas treating everybody alike, the cotton 

 farmer, the wheat farmer, the corn farmer, and everybody else. 



Now there are some general principles that I would like to leave with 

 you. I think, gentlemen, we are looking at the trees; we cannot see 

 the woods, and we want to look at the woods a while. We are looking 

 at too much detail. We are confused by so many conflicting opinions, 

 and, as I stated a while ago, some of which is coming from our own out- 

 standing farm leaders, and I think that they are not going to be sup- 

 ported very much longer by the farmers. I am expecting a change of 

 some kind and it will come, I think, before long. 



Mr. Pace. It is coming now. 



Mr. Sullivan. I think I can see it coming. Our boys are not going 

 to be donating their services and stand by and be controlled by some- 

 body higher up. 



I am a member of farm organizations and this applies to two of 

 them; I happen to be on the State board of those organizations. I 

 believe in them; I believe that they need to reflect the opinion and the 

 wishes of the farmers at the moment, not last year, or 2 years ago, but 

 to do it now. We have got to look at the woods a while. 



Now what are the general principles that we should lay down? 

 First, this whole farm program should be wi'apped around the program 

 of conservation. We have a slogan on the letterhead of the Western 

 Kansas Development Association which says: "Under all the land; 

 over all the people." When you destroy the land on which we live 

 you destroy ourselves. The land supports a prosperous and happy 

 people and will so long as we take care of it. So let us wrap our whole 

 program around the conservation program. 



I have 15 miles of terraces on my farm; I have soil-saving dams; I 

 have plenty of water-conservation dams. I have reseeded Buft'alo 

 grass on land that rolls, that is rolling for wheat; I am getting it back 

 in grass. There are other boys who have ploughed up good land and 

 put it into wheat who should not be penalized one iota, but the boys 

 who have ploughed up the rolling land are the ones who should be 



